The Council at Jerusalem

Acts 15:1-41

Today this reading is beautiful; full of hope for all of us and Peter and James bring such wonder, wisdom and love to the conversation that I would rejoice to have been there with them. James' words from Simeon are so insightful, and mean that all of us these many years and generations later are recipients of these promises of God.

Their directions are clear as well, don't add burdens to people's lives, but make certain they know what not to do. What not to do to be in right relationship with God and for their own health. This is good advice.

How smart that the council wrote a letter saying they all agreed and then hand delivered it with the same words. After all, anyone could write a letter, and if you didn't know the person you wouldn't know for certain the words were true. In this case they sent witnesses along who could verify the letter and the authorship. This is like much of what we have been reading, in that the witnesses have been the ones telling what they have seen, to those of us who come later, so that we may be assured.

It is an odd last paragraph not in keeping with the tenor of most of the reading, but I think it sounds like Joseph's story, where his brothers sent him into slavery. Not exactly the same, but what I am getting at is up to now Paul and Barnabas had been making the rounds together to only one place at a time and now we have doubled the number of those who are going about spreading the good news. Paul has Silas, who we have already heard was a prophet in his own right and Barnabas has young John Mark to go with him and these circumstances, while they may have been caused by man's own weakness, can be used by God for His glory. "What you meant for harm, God meant for good." Sometimes it is our good intentions that carry the news, and sometimes God does it in spite of us.

Thankfully.

See you tomrrow.
-maggie